Salah satu dari kalian pasti pernah menulis sebuah surat pada teman, kerabat, atau orang tua kalian? Tulis menulis surat bisa dibilang sudah ketinggalan jaman sekarang ini, orang-orang lebih suka untuk menulis e-mail atau menggunakan aplikasi chat pada smartphone yang mereka miliki. Namun, tidak ada salahnya untuk kita mempelajari bagaimana cara menulis sebuah surat yang baik. mari kita dalami lebih lanjut tentang surat-menyurat dalam bahasa inggris ini. Meskipun Personal Letter lebih mudah daripada Formal Letter pasti diantara kalian pernah waktu lagi nulis Personal Letter, terus tiba-tiba kebingungan sendiri mau nulis apa di suratnya?
“Hmm.. nulisnya gimana, ya?”
Pikiran-pikiran semacam itu pasti pernah mengganggu benakmu, kan?
Nah, kalau kamu lagi nulis surat formal terus malah jadi bingung sendiri, sebaiknya kamu baca artikel ini dulu, deh! Kita belajar cara membuat Personal Letter yang baik dan benar. Langsung aja, perhatikan langkah-langkah berikut ini, ya!
Apa itu Personal Letter ?
Personal letter adalah sebuah surat tidak resmi yang dikirim oleh satu individu ke individu lainnya dan biasanya berisi hal-hal pribadi. Sifat personal letter yaitu tidak resmi sehingga surat ini tidak dapat ditujukkan untuk sebuah instansi, organisasi, atau perusahaan.
Jadi, personal letter tidak tepat untuk email lamaran bahasa Inggris. Personal letter umumnya berisi undangan, ucapan selamat ulang tahun, ucapan kelulusan, permintaan maaf, ucapan berbelasungkawa, dll.
Struktur dari Personal Letter
- Date (Tanggal)
Biasanya tanggal ini ditulis pada kiri paling atas. Tanggal ini menunjukkan kapan waktu surat ditulis.
- Address (Alamat)
Bagian ini adalah tempat dimana kamu menulis surat atau alamat asal si pengirim tinggal. Alamat ditulis pada bagian kanan atas.
- Salutation & Name (Salam & Nama)
Bagian ini menuliskan salam pembuka dan nama penerima surat. Contohnya “Dear…”, “Dearest…”, “Sweetheart”, “Darling”, “My love” dan lain-lain.
- Introduction (Pembukaan)
Pembukaan dari surat biasanya dimulai dengan sebuah pembukaan seperti tanggapan dari surat sebelumnya atau bisa juga awal perkenalan diri jika kalian baru memulai surat-menyurat.
- Body (Isi Surat)
Bagian ini merupakan isi atau inti dari surat. Pada bagian Body ini kalian menceritakan semua isi surat yang ingin kita ceritakan.
- Closure (Penutup)
Bagian ini menunjukkan bahwa surat akan segera berakhir.
- Complimentary close (Salam Penutup)
Bagian ini merupakan ungkapan penutup pendek seperti, “With love”. “Sincerely yours”, “With love”, and so on.
- Signature (Tanda tangan)
Bagian ini berada di bawah complementary close, kalian bisa membubuhkan tanda tangan atau bisa juga hanya inisial nama kalian saja.
Jenis Personal Letter
Ternyata ada banyak jenis personal letter.
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- Pen Pal (sahabat pena)
adalah orang yang saling tukar-menukar surat dengan orang lain untuk berteman dengan seseorang yang belum pernah ia temui sebelumnya.
- Fan mail (surat penggemar)
adalah surat yang ditujukan untuk orang yang kamu idolakan, bisa ke aktor film, artis, penulis, dan tidak harus dari kalangan terkenal, intinya orang yang sangat kamu kagumi dan idolakan.
- Love (surat cinta)
adalah surat yang diberikan pada orang yang sangat kamu sayangi dan peduli, kamu juga bisa menyatakan perasaanmu dengan romantis.
- Farewell (surat perpisahan)
adalah surat perpisahan yang berisi ucapan perpisahan dan keberuntungan untuk seseorang yang akan pindah ke luar negeri, pindah sekolah, pindah kerja, dan pindah berjauhan dengan kita dalam waktu yang lama.
- Get-well (surat semoga sembuh)
adalah surat harapan untuk orang yang sedang sakit dan mendoakannya segera diberi kesehatan.
- Condolence (surat belasungkawa)
adalah surat belasungkawa yang didalamnya berisi simpati khususnya atas kematian seseorang yang dekat dengan penerima surat. Kamu berharap mereka diberi kekuatan dalam menghadapi kesedihan tersebut, turut berduka atas kehilangannya, atau kamu juga bisa membagikan memori baik bersama orang yang meninggal tersebut.
- Congratulations (surat ucapan selamat)
adalah surat ucapan selamat atas kebahagiaan dan pencapaian seseorang, misalnya ulang tahun, pernikahan, pencapaian, atau penghargaan.
- Thank you (surat terimakasih)
adalah surat terimakasih yang berisi apresiasimu kepada seseorang yang sudah memberikan atau melakukan suatu hal yang baik kepadamu.
- Holiday/Celebration (surat liburan/perayaan)
adalah surat liburan atau acara perayaan seperti hari ulang tahun, Eid, Natal, Tahun Baru, dan hari spesial serta libur bersama lainnya.
Ungkapan dalam Personal Letter
Adapun ciri-ciri surat pribadi yaitu: 1) bagian surat tidak selengkap formal invitation letter; 2) bahasanya subjektif sesuai dengan isi hati penulis; 3) tidak ada peraturan yang mengikat untuk cara penulisannya; 4) bebas menggunakan perlengkapan surat misalnya penggunaan kertas, warna tinta hingga sampul surat.
Bagian isi surat disebut the body yang terdiri atas tiga seperti yang sudah dijelaskan dalam poin D. Bagian-Bagian Personal Letter: The body (isi surat). Di bawah ini ungkapan dalam memulai isi surat, inti surat, hingga penutup.
- Mengawali Surat
- Dear James,/ Hi James,/ Hello James, (James tersayang,/Hai James,/Halo James,)
- Best wishes,/Write soon. (Dengan hormat,/ Aku akan tulis surat padamu secepat yang kubisa.)
- We have lost contact for too long. (Sudah lama kita tidak bertemu.)
- It’s been a long time since the last met. (Rasanya lama sekali sejak terakhir kita bertemu.)
- How are you? (Apa kabar?)
- Hope this letter finds you… (Kuharap surat ini sampai kepadamu…)
- Thank you for your last letter. (Terimakasih atas suratmu sebelumnya.)
- It was so good to hear from you. (Senang mendengar tentangmu.)
- Sorry for answering late. (Maaf baru sempat membalas.)
- I am sorry I should have written earlier… (Maaf aku seharusnya menulis surat lebih awal…)
- Haven’t heard from you in a while so I thought… (Sudah lama tidak mendengar kabarmu jadi aku pikir…)
2. Masuk ke Inti Surat
- I am sorry to inform you that… (Maaf aku ingin memberitahumu bahwa…)
- I’m just writing to tell you about… (Aku hanya menulis untuk memberi tahu mu tentang … )
- In your last letter you asked me about… (Dalam surat terakhir mu, kamu bertanya kepada ku tentang…)
- I’m very grateful for… (aku sangat berterima kasih atas… )
- I’m sure you will be happy to hear that… (aku yakin kamu akan senang mendengarnya…)
- I’m sure you’ill be interested to know that… (aku yakin kamu akan tertarik untuk mengetahui bahwa… )
- By the way, did you know that… (Omong-omong, apakah kamu tahu bahwa…)
- I’m sorry but I have to tell you that… (Maaf, tetapi aku harus memberi tahumu bahwa… )
- I wonder if you could help me. (Aku ingin tahu apakah kamu dapat membantuku.)
3. Penutup
- Let me know as soon as possible. (Beritahu aku secepat mungkin.)
- I am looking forward to seeing you soon. (Aku menantikan balasanmu.)
- I am looking forward to hear from you soon. (Aku menantikan balasanmu.)
- My best wishes for the coming test. (Harapan terbaikku untuk ujianmu.)
- See you. (Sampai jumpa.)
- I will write soon. (Aku akan segera menulis surat.)
- I am waiting for a quick reply. (Aku menunggu balasanmu secepatnya.)
- Looking forward to see you again. (Tidak sabar menunggu balasanmu.)
- Bye. (Dah.)
- Give my regards to your mother. (Titip salam untuk ibumu.)
- Hope to hear from you soon. (Aku menantikan balasanmu.)
Contoh Personal Letter
SOAL dan JAWABAN
Question Number 1-2 refers to the following text!
Jl. Plamboyan No. 89 Pemalang
2nd Pebruary 2009
Dear Intan
Intan, sorry I haven’t written to you for so long. We moved into a new apartment last month and we’ve been really busy getting settled.
It’s a nice apartment. It is bigger than our old one. It’s big so there are a lot of rooms to work in. It has a big living room, two bedrooms and two bathrooms. Another thing I like is the kitchen.
The apartment is on a quiet street in a good neighborhood. There’s also a shopping centre just down the street with a supermarket, some quite good restaurants and some stores.
We really enjoy living here. Do come over and have a look next time you are in the town. I’ll wait.
Love
Shinta
1. What is the letter about?
a. Shinta’s room.
b. Intan and Shinta’s apartment
c. Shinta’s business
d shopping centre near Shinta’s apartment
e. Shinta’s new apartment (Jawaban Benar)
2. Why hasn’t Shinta written a letter to Intan for so long?
a. Because she was busy getting settled
b. Because she enjoyed living in an apartment
c. Because she was reluctant
d. Because she had to move into an apartment (Jawaban Benar)
e. Because she lived in an apartment
Question Number 3-6 refer to the following text!
Dear Igon
How are you? Hope everything is okay with you. I’m all right here.
We are going to have the national examination, aren’t we? Are you well prepared for it? Well, to be honest, I just have some difficulties in preparing for it, especially in science. There are extra lessons in my school and I take them all. But, I feel that they don’t help. I’m still confused in solving mathematic problems. I’m just worried that I fail the national examination. Do you have any suggestion for me? I really appreciate your help.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Your buddy
Fahim
3. What does the letter tell us about?
a. Asking for a friend to teach mathematic
d. Giving a solution to a friend
b. Preparing for the national examination
e. Having extra lesson at school
c. Asking for a friend’s suggestion to solve a problem (Jawaban Benar)
4. Why is Fahim worried that he may fail the national examination?
a. There are extra lessons at Fahim’s school
b. He appreciated Igon’s help
c. He will have the national examination soon
d. His friends are all well prepared
e. He is confused in solving mathematic problem (Jawaban Benar)
5. “I’m still confused in solving mathematic problems.” The word “confused” means ……
a. Unable to think clearly (Jawaban Benar)
b. Unable to perform well
c. Unable to behave politely
d. Unable to speak fluently
e. Unable to read quickly
6. “I’m just worried that I fail the national examination.” The antonym of word “fail” is ……
a. Escape
b. Predict
c. Success (Jawaban Benar)
d. Reach
e. Underestimate
Question Number 7-9 refer to the following text!
Jl. Jambu 129 Bima
30th January 2017
Dear Frodi,
It was a real sorrow that I heard this morning of your great loss. I knew your mother was ill, for your brother told me several weeks ago. However, as he at that time did not seem to think the illness was very serious, the news of your mother’s death came to me as a shock. You have my sincere and heartfelt sympathy, my dear fellow, in your sorrow. I know you will feel it deeply, for you always thought so much of your mother and loved her so truly. I feel it also as a personal loss to myself, for your mother was always very kind to me. Her death must be a terrible grief to your father, too. Please assure him of my sincere sympathy.
Words, I know, are poor comforters. “The heart knows its own sorrow”, and in such sorrows we are always alone. However, it is not mere words when I say that I feel with you in your sorrow.
Your sincere friend,
Jean
7. What is the possible relation between the sender and the recipient?
A. Relatives
B. Employers
C. Friends (Jawaban Benar)
D. Siblings
E. Employees
8. From the letter we know that ….
A. Frodi’s mother was not ill before her death (Jawaban Benar)
B. Jean sent letter to Frodi several weeks ago
C. Jean was very sorrowful to send the letter to his mother
D. Jean had known Frodi’s mother before (Jawaban Benar)
E. Frodi is the only child in his family
9. “You have my sincere and heartfelt sympathy, my dear fellow, in your sorrow.” What is the closest meaning of word “sincere”?
A. Real
B. Caring
C. Generous
D. Honest (Jawaban Benar)
E. Curious
Question Number 10-13 refer to the following text!
Ubud, 7th April 2007
Dear Tamara,
Hi there. How are things with you? It’s good to know that you are doing fine in business. Have you received my postcard?
I am now sitting in my hotel room writing a letter to you about my wonderful holiday. I think this is the most wonderful holiday have I ever had. There are a lot of interesting tourist objects to visit, beautiful local art and craft, tasty traditional food, and much more. It’s Thursday today. I can’t believe this my last day. I wish I could spend more time here. I am certain I will stay longer on my next visit.
I’ll be home about 3 p.m. tomorrow if the flight is on time. On Monday I must go back to work. I can’t wait to show my video to my class.
Okay, that’s all for now. Send my love to your children.
Best wishes from,
Linda
10. The letter tells us about ….
A. Linda’s holiday in Bali (Jawaban Benar)
B. Tamara’s letter
C. Linda’s favorite places
D. Tamara’s plan for Bali
E. Tamara’s video documents
11. On what day Linda going to arrive home?
A. Thursday
B. Friday (Jawaban Benar)
C. Saturday
D. Sunday
E. Monday
12. “… the most wonderful holiday …” The word “wonderful” has the same meaning with ….
A. Usual
B. Awesome (Jawaban Benar)
C. Poor
D. Hateful
E. Worse
13. The letter shows that Linda ….
A. Has not eaten the day before
B. Bought all beautiful local art
C. Has tried the traditional food (Jawaban Benar)
D. Did not have nice holiday
E. Asked Tamara to join her vacancy
Question Number 14- refer to the following text!
Dear Sherly,
I’m writing to you concerning of my last day in Jogja. I just got back from Borobudur, the wonderful temple I’ve ever seen. The weather is fine. We are now staying in a hotel. It’s not far from Malioboro. We are treated well here. It has many excellent staff who serve the customers. We plan to go around Malioboro after the children take a short nap. We want to enjoy having “lesehan” there. It is a kind of a restaurant but we sit on the ground.
Many kinds of local handicraft are sold along Malioboro street. Both domestic and foreign tourists are interested in them. I want to buy some as souvenirs. Don’t worry, I’ll also buy you the most interesting one.
Love,
Mira
14. How do the staff serve the customers of the hotel?
A. Proudly
B. Badly
C. Interestingly
D. Nicely (Jawaban Benar)
E. Lazily
15. The text gives us information about ….
A. The wonderful Borobudur temple
B. The souvenirs to be bought
C. Mira’s last day in Jogja (Jawaban Benar)
D. A comfortable hotel near Malioboro
E. A planning to have vacation in Jogja
16. Who is the letter from?
A. Customers
B. The hotel staffs
C. Sherly
D. Mira (Jawaban Benar)
E. Hotel custome
Sumber: https://englishadmin.com/2019/04/contoh-soal-personal-letter-dan-jawabannya-beserta-arti.html
https://www.jagoanbahasainggris.com/2017/03/materi-dan-contoh-personal-letter-kelas-xi.html
